Hydrostatic toy.



H. E. POEHLMAN.

HYDROSTATIG TOY. APPLICATION FILED IAB.16, 19 11.

Patented J an. 16, 1912.

mini) STATES PATENT carton.

nanny E. ronnnmaiv, or ssn FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOB'OF ONE-HALF 'rof JOHN w. FBICKE, or ,SAN rmcrsco, CALIFORNIA.

HYDROS'IATIC TOY.

Specification of Letters Patent. j fatent ed Jan. 16, 1912 Application filed March 18, 1911. Serial No. 614,840.

To all whom it may concern: Be it known that I, HENRY E. POEHLMAN, citizen of the" United States, residing in the city and county of San Francisco and State of California, have invented new and useful Improvements in Hydrostatic. Toys, which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to' amusement devices, vice designed to resemble a geographical form, intersected by a canal, through which may be operated miniature vessels. The object of the present invention is to provide an inexpensive and amusing toy representing.mountainous forms bisected by a canalor cut provided with divisions typifyin'g locks, whereby miniature vessels may be conveyed from one portion of the toy representing the surface of one ocean through the canal to the ocean on the other side of the mountainous formation; and to provide in such a toy means for varying the level of the liquid on which the ships may I he invention consists of the parts and the combination and construction of parts as hereinafter more fully described and claimed, having reference to the accompany-- ing drawings, in wluch Figure 1 is a plan view of the toy. Fig. 2 is an end view of the same. Fig. 3 is a longitudinal vertical section.

My invention comprehends the provision of a toy providedwith a suitable trough or 86 pan 2,7oi suitableproportions. The area of the pan may be formedtof suitable material, such as pressed sheet-metal, papierrnfich, cement, or in which will 'serve' the purpose to.represent '40jnountainous contours, as .3, which may be f extended sufliciently high' above the plane .of .the -pan' 2', in which water ,4. maybe -placed, andpreferably the mountainous contours are represented as being partially cut away, as at 5, to bisect the lan The por- {Qtionfl f the irre lar. mountainous structure 3 is'provide with a series of transversely movable gates 6 ada ted to form locks having vertical longitu inal walls 7, 50 and these walls '7 areextended on each side, as at 8, to form locks of lower elevation than the lock walls 7. The lock walls 8 form extreme locks in the canal system, one adapted to be connected by a closable gate 9 with a ,55' body of water on'one side oi the irregular. i'm'ountaiuous structure 3,, which water -W1 and comprehends particularly a defact any other material to permit represent thePacific ocean, and, the other extreme lock 8 is closable by its respective gate 9, through which communication may be had to an ocean representing the Atlantic.

The depth of water 'in-thepan 2 will be sufiicient to float small vessels. represented at 10, and which are of such width and length as to be passed into the extreme locks 8 when the closing gates 9 have been swung or moved-open. \Vhen thus opened, the

water in one of the locks 8 will be made to assume the level of the water in one of the oceans. I

One of the novel features of the present toy is to provide a means whereby the level of the respective locks 8-8 and the locks between the walls 77, which are much higher than the locks 8-8,' may be varied so as to permit one ofthe vessels 10 to move into one lock, as at.8, fromone of the oceans and then to change the level of .t-he'water in thelock 8 so that it will proximate the level of the water in the ad acent lock 7, and again to provide means whereby the water in the lock 7 may be elevated to proximate the level of the water in the central portion.

of the canal between the gates '6. Any appropriate meansfor accomplishing this variation 1n the level of the locks7 and 8 may be used, and a simple means for efiecting this variation 1s represented here as a tank 11, of which there are as many as ,there are locks in the canal, which tank 1-1 is bodily movable and connected to its re.- spective lOCk'Wfill by a flexible connection, shown here as a hose. 12, andwhen it is desired to elevate a vessel 10 from the level of one of thqoceans in an' egress'lock 8, the tank 11' ofthat locl: elevated and a volume of water in the tank will flow into the lock 8 between its walls and the gates,closing' the ends of the locks, which gates must.

be closed before the tank 11 is moved so as into the stationary lock 8. Thus when a. vessel 10 has been moved into one of the entrance -looks 8 and the gate 9 of this look has been closed, then the tank' ll may be elevated, causing the water contained-in the tank to flow by gravit into the lock 8 con.- taining'the vessel, an the elevation of the level of the fluid the lock 8 will cause the its contained water to discharge vessel to risevertically until it assumes a.

plane in line with the water level in an intermediate lock between the walls 7. By

this time the gate closing communicaticnbe' tween the locks 7 and '8 may be opened, thus permitt ng'the vessel to be moved from the lock 8 into the lock 7 after which the con- 1s the gate 6 on theopposite end of the central trolling gate may be closed and a tank 11 connected to discharge into the lock between the walls 7 may be elevated so that the water contained in the tank 11 may flow into its lack, lifting the level of the Water. and the s 1p.

When the level of the water in the .lock between the walls 7 has approximately reached the level of the water 111 the central chamber between the gates 6, one of these ates may be opened and the ship, moved om the lock 7 into the central lock, and

' "portion of the canal may be opened to allow the ship to be'passed fromthe central prism of the canal into the next adjacent lock 7,. provided the level of the water in the lock 7 has been'brought into line with the water in .the central chamber. Then the water level in one of the locks has been elevated by 'rea-. son of the elevation. of its respective tank 11 V and the discharge of the water fromthis tank into the lock, thecwater thus discharged into the lock is again returned to the tank 11. tolower the. level of the look by lowering again the tank 11, thus permitting. the'excess or added water to flew back into the connectedtank 11; Thusit will be seen that by this toy a' child is considerably amused in the movement of the ships to and-fro through the canal from one ocean to-the other, and also is instructed-in the hydrostatic action of fluids by reason of the vincrease or reduction of the volume of water in the several'locks.v

. 'I do not wish to be limited 'to any particular form of gate structure whereby the SeV-v' feral canals-may be closed, nor do I wish-to be limited to any particular form of means s. by the addition oiavolume of water from for causing a variation of elevation of water in the several looks, as manifestly instead of varying the level of the water in the locks a tank 11, I may use in lieu of the tanks 11 -';.small pu'm s by which water may readily Fbe' pumpe ;fr0m"one for the other ofthe suitablamateri'al and contour attached to Z-the. receptacle, a series of communicating passageways bisecting said irregular suraces, ..means for, c osmg communication oceans into any of the-locks. One tankjll'f "regular surfaces, through which said -vesceptacle for liquid, irregular surfaces of suit-- able material and contour attached to the re-. ceptacle, a series of communicating passageways of various elevations bisecting said irregular surfaces, means for closing communication between said passageways, and

within the passageways.

. 3. An amusement device comprising a r means for varying the level of the liquid 75 ceptacle for liquid, irregular surfaces of suitj-v able material and contour attachecl'to there ceptacle, a series of communicating passageways of various elevations bisecting said irregular surfaces, means for-closing communication between said passageways, and

in the several passageways.

r 4-. An amusement device'comprisin'g a receptacle for liquid, irregular surfaces of suitirrcgular surfaces, means for closing communication between'said passageways, and means for varying the level of a hquid withwh'reby a volume of liquid may be added to means for varying the level'of'aliquid .Withable material and contour'attached to the re- 4 ceptacle, a series of communicating passage ways of various elevations bisectmg said.

in the several passages, said means including devices connected to respective passageways,

the fluid already contained in the passagediiierent elevations bisecting the aforesaid the level of the liquid within the passageways.

ed to contain liquid, vessels float-able upon said liquid, irregular surfaces representing mountainous or hilly country, a series of passageways representing canal locks at d fv;ferent elevations bisecting the aforesaid 1rsels may be moved, means whereby communication between the several locks may be tion of liquid in the locks. I

In'testimo'ny whereof I have hereunto set I in hand in the presence of two subscribing witnesses. I I

HENRY E. POEHLMAN. i Witnesses: I

JOHN H. HERRING,

Guan ne EDELMAH.

- I. 1 a ceme tum; patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. 0. p

6. A device comprising areceptacle adaptcont-rolled, and'means for varying the eleva- 

